Pedrosa storms to Spanish Pole with Marquez second in all-Honda front row

Dani Pedrosa took a stunning pole position, his 29th in MotoGP and the 47th in his career, edging teammate Marc Marquez by just half a tenth in a breath-taking battle for the top spot during the final minutes of the Gran Premio Red Bull de España qualifying in Jerez. Cal Crutchlow in third completes an all-Honda front row for the first time since the German GP in 2014 (at the Sachsenring).

Dani has led every session this weekend apart from today’s FP4, showing a competitive pace and dazzling speed in every condition. Tomorrow he will start from pole for the first time since Malaysia in 2015, and he’ll do so at the 3,000th Grand Prix of the world championship.

Marc made good use of the work he did on the setup of his RC213V, and after a fourth-fastest time in the morning’s FP3 session ensured him a direct passage to Q2, he posted the top time in FP4 and then fought hard for the pole in qualifying.

Race will start tomorrow 14h00 local time.

Dani Pedrosa

Pole position1'38.249

“This was probably one of the best poles of my career because it was a really hard battle. It was a strategic end of the session with Marc there right behind me, so for a moment I wasn’t sure if I should push or not. There was no choice anyway, so I just went for it. I’m very happy because our main target for the GP was to be on the front row. The feeling was really good, and it has been good all weekend, so I told myself, Okay, let’s try it. It has been a while since I’ve led in qualifying; I’ve struggled a lot last season so I’m very happy with today. Thanks to the team for the hard work, and I’m also happy for Honda. It looks like we’re doing really well so let’s focus for tomorrow and do the best we can!”

Marc Marquez

2nd1'38.298

“Dani has been really strong and fast today, and all weekend honestly. For that reason, I tried to follow him during the final laps in qualifying, to learn what he was doing differently! I was able to do a very good lap time and that was my target, to get a front-row start because I’ve been struggling a bit here with the fast lap. I’m happy because it looks like we’re getting better and better. Today in FP4 we were able to set a very good pace and we’re very satisfied with that. Normally this circuit is not one of the best for our bike and for my riding style, but it looks like our plans are working well. We’re improving in the areas we’re working on, and that’s also important in view of the coming races at the other European tracks. Anyway, now we must think about tomorrow; race day is always different but we’ll try to manage well.”

MotoGP 2017Saturday, May 6th 2017

Qualifying
Round 4
Gran Premio de EspañaSpain

Qualifying Results

Sunny

Humidity

43%

Track Temp

40°C

Air Temp

24°C

Pos.

Rider

Num

Nation

Team

Constructor

Time/Gap

1

Pedrosa Dani

26

SPA

Repsol Honda Team

Honda

1'38.249

2

Marquez Marc

93

SPA

Repsol Honda Team

Honda

1'38.298

3

Crutchlow Cal

35

GBR

LCR Honda

Honda

1'38.453

4

Vinales Maverick

25

SPA

Movistar Yamaha MotoGP

Yamaha

1'38.677

5

Iannone Andrea

29

ITA

Team Suzuki Ecstar

Suzuki

1'38.744

6

Zarco Johann

5

FRA

Monster Yamaha Tech 3

Yamaha

1'38.861

7

Rossi Valentino

46

ITA

Movistar Yamaha MotoGP

Yamaha

1'38.908

8

Lorenzo Jorge

99

SPA

Mission Winnow Ducati

Ducati

1'38.910

9

Folger Jonas

94

GER

Monster Yamaha Tech 3

Yamaha

1'39.108

10

Miller Jack

43

AUS

Marc VDS Racing Team

Honda

1'39.125

11

Redding Scott

45

GBR

Octo Pramac Racing

Ducati

1'39.152

12

Espargaro Aleix

41

SPA

Aprilia Racing Team Gresini

Aprilia

1'39.400

13

Petrucci Danilo

9

ITA

Octo Pramac Racing

Ducati

1'39.090

14

Dovizioso Andrea

4

ITA

Mission Winnow Ducati

Ducati

1'39.255

15

Espargaro Pol

44

SPA

Red Bull KTM Factory Racing

Yamaha

1'39.282

16

Smith Bradley

38

GBR

Red Bull KTM Factory Racing

KTM

1'39.321

17

Bautista Alvaro

19

SPA

Pull&Bear Aspar Team

Ducati

1'39.462

18

Rabat Tito

53

SPA

Marc VDS Racing Team

Honda

1'39.564

19

Abraham Karel

17

CZE

Pull&Bear Aspar Team

Ducati

1'39.678

20

Baz Loris

76

FRA

Reale Avintia Racing

Ducati

1'39.824

21

Barbera Hector

8

SPA

Reale Avintia Racing

Ducati

1'39.906

22

Lowes Sam

22

GBR

Aprilia Racing Team Gresini

Aprilia

1'40.213

23

Tsuda Takuya

22

JPN

Suzuki Test Team

Suzuki

1'40.386

Gallery

Images are copyright but free for editorial use.

Location Information

Built in 1986 and hosting its first Grand Prix one year later, the circuit of Jerez is now one of the most popular MotoGP venues and the focal point for a city fanatical about sport. Set in a slight valley in the south of Spain, Jerez is blessed with consistently… read more.

Location Information

Built in 1986 and hosting its first Grand Prix one year later, the circuit of Jerez is now one of the most popular MotoGP venues and the focal point for a city fanatical about sport. Set in a slight valley in the south of Spain, Jerez is blessed with consistently… read more.